Abdul Karim (second left) stopping to look at an interpretation board while going up the trail. – Photo by Roystein Emmor.
KUCHING: A new trail, the Beccari Discovery Trail, was launched today as the latest tourism attraction in the Matang area.
The trail was launched by Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah at the Sri Maha Mariamann Hindu Temple in Kampung Matang and the launch coincided with the centenary death anniversary of renowned Italian botanist Odoardo Beccari.
“The story of Italian botanist Odoardo Beccari provides the Matang area with a new tourism product. He arrived in Sarawak on June 19, 1865 as a 22 year-old with a passion for scientific discovery.
“At this time, the Matang hill was a wild place and during his two-year stay in Borneo, Beccari collected and documented over 4,000 specimens, chiefly plants, but also insects, birds and animals, including orangutan both at Matang and also many other parts of Sarawak including the Batang Lupar, Tubau, and Belaga,” he told a press conference after the launching.
In his lifetime, Beccari published over 150 scientific papers. His work on palms on Matang earned him the reputation as a world specialist. Today, the forests at Matang are recognized as one of the richest palm habitats in the world with nearly 100 species identified.
He became acclaimed as a leading scientist in his day, due to his contribution to scientific knowledge gained from his collections made in Sarawak, said Abdul Karim.
Aside from that, the site for the launching, the Sri Maha Mariamann Hindu temple marks the legacy of the forefathers of the Indian Hindu community over 100 years ago, he said.
“We also followed the trail to where Beccari’s bungalow used to be, and it is a historical attaction to attract tourists to come here. Though they have to hike some 3km, it is worthwhile as the tourists can enjoy the beautiful view, flora and fauna along the way.”
Speaking on the new trail, he said that it was a collaboration between Friends of Sarawak Museum (FoSM) , Sarawak Forestry and his ministry.
During the launching, Abdul Karim also planted coffee trees at the temple compound.
According to a press statement, the 3.2km trail up the hillside is mostly tar-sealed, and follows the route of the old cart track from Kampong Matang to the site of Beccari’s field hut, Vallombrosa, where he spent the best part of a year studying the trees, insects and fungi. Rajah Charles Brooke later had a bungalow built on the site, and the terraces excavated for this can still be seen.
The Beccari Discovery Trail features 12 interpretation boards giving information on some of the animals and plants that we might see along the trail both by day and by night, the abandoned tea plantation which Beccari helped Rajah Charles Brooke to establish, and at the top, the Vallombrosa.
“The year 2020 marks the centenary of Beccari’s death which is marked in Italy with an exhibition in Florence, Beccari’s hometown, in October,” said the statement.
Also present were Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Sebastian Ting, the ministry’s permanent secretary Hii Chang Kee and Batu Kitang assemblyman Lo Khere Chiang.